The current state of Syracuse basketball is… something to say the least. Currently sitting at 8-8 with the thick of ACC play coming up, it’s time for the best starting lineup to materialize for Adrian Autry. Despite a lot of struggles from guards Jaquan Carlos and even Choppa Moore, an unlikely hero has stepped up when called upon. That hero? Junior guard Kyle Cuffe Jr, which begs the question: does Cuffe deserve a shot in the starting lineup?
From the surface, you would say that this is a ridiculous statement. Cuffe Jr. has averaged just 5.2 points so far this season, alongside 1.2 rebounds and half an assist. But then again, Cuffe has only averaged 11.5 minutes so far in 2024-25. What if he had a full shot? Well, we’ve seen some opportunities arise thanks to JJ Starling’s injury, and it’s somewhat promising. In the twelve games that Cuffe has played in this season, the junior has scored double-digit points in five of them.
This conversation has come to light a lot recently, especially after Cuffe’s two big threes late for SU to surge past Boston College. The biggest thing Cuffe brings to a rotation is his hustle, fighting for every loose ball. This is ironic because Jaquan Carlos was supposed to fill the same void.
“He competes. He doesn’t back down. That’s what resonates with me,” Autry said after SU’s win over Bucknell in December. “He didn’t get off the bench for a couple of games early on. You know, you couldn’t tell if you came to practice. He kept his head down. And, you know, that’s who I wanna go to war with. Guys that are gonna be tough.”
So should Cuffe actually take over a spot in the starting rotation? I don’t think so. As solid as he’s been and the hustle that he shows, he doesn’t fit this team with JJ Starling healthy. Cuffe is best as a facilitator and carrying the ball up the court, and it doesn’t seem likely that Starling would move to the two. In a scheme right now where the offense is isolation-heavy, Cuffe wouldn’t have the same success as Jaquan Carlos or Choppa Moore. Also, you need a spark off the bench for the team to keep scoring on offense. Kind of like Quadir Copeland of 2023, keep Cuffe on the bench and put him in when the offense needs it.
If Syracuse wants to play in March, some consistency needs to be found, and Adrian Autry should be doing anything and everything to try and find it. Could that mean giving Cuffe a shot? Sure, but this team has bigger problems right now and its running out of time to fix them.
